Heated Grips vs Heated Gloves

If you live in a colder area or ride year round I’m sure you’ve thought about getting heated grips, but are heated grips worth it and will they work for you?

Heated grips are a very simple concept, easy to fit the are two basic types, ones that include the grip

and one that has a heating element and glue to the bars then you add grips of your choice

Which ones are good for you, maybe either maybe neither! The ones with the integrated grips are better suited to more road oriented riding grips tend to be smoother, but keep in mind when your grips wear out so do your heated grips, they are a set so you will have to invest in new ones, a whole new complete setup. Keep in mind you can get foam grip cover to add to the life of the grips, but also keep in mind that this will add to the circumference of the grip so if you have smaller hands be sure you can still grip your bars as much as you like to.

The heating element type you give you the choice to add the grips that you prefer, so for more offroad riding these may be a better choice and are the ones I prefer.

…but before you go out and buy some there are a few things you need to know, although they both work very well, your handlebars can increase or reduce the heated grips effectivity.

Do you have steel bars or aluminum bars, don’t know? Grab a magnet, most stock bars are steel most aftermarket are aluminum, the magnet will be attracted to the steel, not the aluminum.

Steel bars will hold the heat a lot better, the aluminum bars will dissipate the heat. With the exact same heated element on my XT1200 vs DR650/ Stock bars vs aftermarket, on the XT my hands feel like they are burning within a few minutes and I have to turn the grips down or off, on the DR the aluminum bars sap the heat and if its cold I can barely feel anything.

Your next option, heated gloves, again two types – with integrated batteries you charge beforehand

or ones that plug into your bikes electrical system

The only advice I would give is to get waterproof gloves to make them the most effective, the heat they give out is comparable.

The last point you need to be aware of regardless of what your choice is of the four options is to check what the draw is of the element vs what your output is of you stator (this information is in your owner manual) DO NOT add them if the will make you exceed your systems output.

For more ideas of setting your motorcycle up for longer rides consult the ADVrider forums or rtwPaul.com